Highlighting some of the lesser known, but just as important past Armenian characters in India.
Those Armenians who have some sort of connection, or maybe simply buried in Calcutta and other locations in India, I re-create their lives and put them into short stories, at least as much as I am able to.
The Armenians of India are unique and their stories need to be told. I hope this blog goes a little way to telling those stories.
Armenian graves in India www.chater-genealogy.com.

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Sunday, 12 April 2015

Today in 2015, as the Armenian communities around the world prepare to remember the
enormous loss of life that took place between 1915 and 1923 in the massacres
of the Ottoman Empire Against the Armenians, it is interesting to see that even small
communities in far off lands did what they could to send funds back to
Armenia. Armenians in Rangoon tried to help the refugees in this devastating period of history. It is of course uncomfortable to think that some danced whilst others suffered and died 4,000 miles away, but those in Rangoon simply had no real idea of what was truly happening to their fellow Armenians.

The Rangoon Gazette 30 October 1916

ARMENIAN REFUGEES’ FUND

BENEFIT DANCE AND PRESENTATION

A very well attended and enjoyable fancy dress dance took
place at the Armenian Club on Friday night in aid of the Armenian Refugees’
Relief Fund.The spacious dancing hall
on the upper floor of the club house had been attractively decorated by Mr. S.
Vertannes and other members of the club.The occasion marked the presentation also of a Bull from the Catholicos
of the Armenian Church to Mrs. Tarleton and Mrs. McCarthy, in recognition of
their services to the Armenian cause.Mrs Tarleton was not present, being at home in Ireland, but Mrs.
McCarthy was present and the Bull, which was read in Armenian by the Rev. Vahan
Aghan, priest of the Armenian Church in Rangoon, was presented to her by Mr.
Manook who previously read an English translation of it.

The Bull, which had the official seal of the Catholicos
George V, and bore his signature was as follows:

“George V, the Servant of Jesus Christ and, by the grace of
God Catholicos of all the Armenians and Patriarch of the Holy Convent of
Etchmiadzine, to excellent Mrs. Tarleton and Mrs. McCarthy sojourning at
Rangoon, patriarchal greetings and blessings from the Apostolic and Catholic
Church of Etchmiadzine.

Just as the heart of an afflicted father (like a spring
flower refreshed by drops of rain) rejoices and puts on new vitality, so my
afflicted father’s heart is rejoiced greatly at the news of the self-devoted
efforts of you two ladies of another race, who have entirely laid aside your
personal comfort and have brought your ardour to the assistance of a good
object as perfect disciples of our great and loving Master, Jesus Christ, and
have added your comfort to our sons and daughters in affliction, whose
groanings and lamentations have reached so far, even unto you.

As a pledge of my appreciation of your sisterly efforts to
alleviate the suffering of my children, exiles from the home of their fathers,
I with my Patriarchal Bull express to my daughters in Christ my heartfelt
thanks.I bless you and pray to God to
give you more and more grace and strength to carry out more and more Christian
works to satisfy the various needs of my afflicted children.

May God raise up others as compassionate (as you) to
co-operate with you, and for the accomplishment of this wish I will be always
joined with you in prayer and rejoicing.

Wishing you good health, may you grow in the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ and be blessed through me for ever and ever. Amen.”

In making the presentation Mr. Manook dwelt upon the
valuable help Mrs. McCarthy had rendered to the Armenians and the great
gratitude felt by the Armenian community.

Mrs. McCarthy thanked Mr. Manook for his remarks after
which cheers for Mrs. McCarthy and Mrs. Tarleton and Mrs. Vertannes were given.
Mrs. McCarthy was presented on her arrival with a handsome bouquet by Miss
Vertannes.

Among those present at the dance were all the leading
members of the Armenian community and their families, except the present of the
club, Mr. W. Shircore who is convalescing from the results of a recent serious
operation, much regret being expressed at his absence.There were fifteen dances on the programme
which was augmented by a number of extras, and this made the dancing run into
the early hours.Amongst the many
original and effective costumes, and there were many handsome ones, that of
Miss Lake as a Kashmir girl was particularly striking and to her was awarded
the prize for ladies, a handsome brooch with precious stones, presented by Messrs.
Coombes Company Limited.The costumes of
Mrs. M. Minus, Miss A. Minus, Miss Vertannes, Mrs. Harding, Miss K. Jordan and
several others were so good that the judging required some time.It took place after the tenth dance when all
paraded before the judges.If the judging
of the ladies costumes was difficult that of the gentlemen’s was more so, but
it narrowed down to Mr. Mathews of Messrs. Rowe and Company as a clown, J.
Johannes as a Hebrew, Mr. Vertannes and Mr. Bowman, Mr. Johannes winning the prize,
a gold cigarette case presented by Messrs. P. Orr and Sons.The catering was done by Mr. M. David of the
Criterion Hotel and left nothing to be desired.

The result of the dance was stated to be very gratifying
and the proceeds, which are expected to go over Rs.500, will be forwarded to
the secretary for the Armenian Refugees’ Relief Fund to be sent to the
Catholicos of all the Armenians for distribution.

To learn more about the genocide of the Armenians please take a look at the following sites or simply google 'Armenian genocide'.

Thursday, 9 April 2015

A sensational matrimonial
case of a well known Armenian family in Rangoon was reported in the local papers
in early 1891 over a period of up to 10 days. The Rangoon Times of February of that year dedicated well in excess
of 12,000 words across a number of column inches in their newspaper during the
course of the hearing. Suits were brought to Court by Mr. Sarkies Manook (owner
of the British Burma Hotel, Rangoon) for a divorce and a separate suit by Mrs.
Manook for a separation order.

First to be heard was the
suit of Mr. Manook for the dissolution of his marriage.It was alleged by Mr. Manook that his wife
Mrs. Manook had apparently been adulterous with her cousin Vardon Jordan whilst
Vardon Jordan had been living in the same house as the Manooks.

Mrs. Manook’s suit was for
a separation based on Mr. Manook’s cruel and abusive behaviour towards her.

Extracts from the
newspapers:

1891 February 5 The Rangoon Times

The Manook Matrimonial Dispute

In the Recorder’s Court this morning, the two cases
relating to Mr. and Mrs. Manook, members of the Armenian community resident in
this city, and well-known locally, came on for hearing.The first case on the board for judicial
separation brought by Mrs. Against her husband on the grounds of adultery and
the second case was suit by Mrs [sic should be Mr] Manook against his wife on
the grounds of adultery with Mr. Jordan.

On the cases being vetted Mr. Garnet Man suggested
that the case for the dissolution of marriage should be taken up first, as if a
decree was granted in that case, there would be no necessity to go on with the
case for judicial separation. But, if the latter case were taken up first,
whatever might be the rest of it, the case for dissolution of the marriage
would have to be gone into.

After some discussion the suggestion was adopted.

Mr. Vertannes then opened the divorce case in a few
words, and called as his first witness, the petitioner (the husband) Mr.
Sarkies Manook, proprietor of the British Burma Hotel.

MR SARKIES MANOOK, on oath stated that he was the
petitioner in this case and was married to Mrs. Mary Manook in Mandalay in the
year 1875.A few months after the
marriage they came down to Rangoon.There were five children by this marriage, four boys and one girl.His married life had been a happy one until a
couple of years ago.He said his wife
had been living in Lewis Street near Rangoon for the last five years.The co-respondent and his wife’s brother were
living in Jordan’s Hotel together and his wife was anxious that her brother
should come and live with them, as he had gone after some woman or other.It was then arranged that the co-respondent
and his wife’s brother should come and live with them.This was about the middle of the year
1890.Petitioner generally left his house
at about 6 or 7 in the morning to attend to his work, returning at about 11 o’clock
in the day; and then he used to leave again about 12 or 2 o’clock, returning
again about 6,7, or 8 o’clock in the evening for dinner, but his hours were
very uncertain owing to the nature of his business.He had no reason to suspect his wife’s
fidelity until Mrs. Jordan brought a serious charge against his wife when she
and her husband returned with the children from Calcutta.After hearing this he went back and said to
his wife “what is this Mrs. Jordan is charging you with?” he took her by the
arms and shook her and then the first row commenced.This occurred one morning, and the next
mourning which was, he believed, a Sunday, Mrs. Manook left the house and went
to Jordan’s Hotel.He got a letter from
her lawyer demanding her jewellery, clothes and other things, which he gave up
to her.

Mr. Man asked to be allowed to reserve his cross-examination,
as at present, he submitted there was no evidence against his client.

Mr. Heaton begged to be allowed to make the same
request, as at present, there was nothing against his client.

After some discussion, His Honour allowed the
application.

MACARTOOM GALASTIN MANOOK, on oath, stated that he was
a cousin of Mr. Sarkies Manook, the petitioner in this case.In June last he was living with Mr. Sarkies
Manook.He occupied a room on the ground
floor, and Mr. Vardon Jordan occupied an adjoining room. In the mornings
between 6 and 11, Mrs. Manook would be in Mr. Jordan’s room, and Mrs. Sarkies
Manook would be either in bed or at the Hotel.This would occur almost every day between those hours.Mrs. Manook was sometimes in Mr. Jordan’s
room even when he was dressing.He
(witness) had seen this. Jordan himself to be in his night-dress when Mrs.
Manook was in his room.The night-dress
consisted of a pyjama and a thin coat.The pyjama was made of white cloth – neither thick nor thin. His body
could be seen through it. Mrs. Manook and Jordan were on affectionate
terms.He (the witness) saw them both
seated on the bed playing with each other and kissing each other.They were just touching each other. No one
else was in the room at the time. He could not say that he had ever seen them
in any other position.He had seen them
in the position just described several times. He (witness) told Mrs. Manook on
several occasions not to go into Jordan’s room as he husband did not like it,
and also not to go out with Jordan at night time.He said this to her several times but as she
took no notice of it, he did not speak to her any more about.He did not tell Mr. Jordan about this.He (witness) left the house on the 7th
or 8th June but he did not recollect the month exactly.He first went to his brother’s house and
subsequently to Mandalay. In the
evenings he used to be in the hotel up to 7 o’clock, returning home about that
hour.About this time Mrs. Manook, if
she was downstairs, would be in Jordan’s room.He had seen Mrs. Manook and Mr. Jordan go out together and return
together at night………….

Another witness stated:

GREGORY CATCHIC THADDEUS sworn.I am employed at Solomon & Co, I know Mr.
and Mrs. Manook and Mr. Jordan. In April last I saw her in the Jordan Hotel.
(Mr. Man objected to any evidence being given as to any acts outside what
occurred in the house, as no particulars had been furnished). I saw Mr. Jordan
there. Mrs. Manook came in while I was there. Mr. Vardon Jordan was sitting
down there. As soon as he saw Mrs. Manook coming, he got into bed and covered
himself with a blanket. Mrs. Manook came in wished us the time of the day, and
stood near Vardon Jordan’s bed.I
offered her a chair but she would not sit down, she began to talk to him and I
left the room.I saw her feeling him
under the blanket in my presence so I went out.I cannot say what she was feeling for I cannot say at what request she
did that. I did not exactly look but I think she felt him about the chest and
stomach.

The Rangoon Times Friday 6th
February

We give below a report of His Honour’s judgement
yesterday morning, dismissing Mr. Manook’s petition for dissolution of his
marriage on the grounds of his wife’s adultery:

In the case the petitioner prays for a dissolution of
his marriage with the respondent. It appears the parties were married at
Mandalay in 1875. A few months after that they came into Rangoon and remained
in Rangoon eve since. Up to last year they lived happily together and the
petitioner says he had no grounds whatever to suspect his wife of any improper
conduct.About the middle of last year
his wife’s brother came to live at their home together with the respondent Mr.
Vardon Jordan, who is a married man but whose wife and family were then away
from Rangoon and it is said that during the time that Vardon Jordan was living
in this house acts of adultery were committed between him and the
respondent.Now, there is no direct
evidence whatever of adultery.There is
nothing such as would lead this Court in many cases to the conclusion that
adultery had been committed, such as the respondent and co-respondent going
away and living together for a short time, or going to a house of ill-fame, or
--- --- repeatedly in some very out of the way place, or anything of that kind.
The acts from which I am asked to infer that adultery was committed were
certain acts of familiarity, not one of which could by any possibility be
sufficient to ground a charge on.The
question is whether taking all those acts together, they are such assuming the
evidence is correct, as would justify me in coming to the conclusion that the
respondent and the co-respondent must have committed adultery.Now the petitioner himself has not given any
evidence whatever of any thing he himself saw.On the contrary, he says that he did not suspect his wife in any way at
all.It was not until he received
certain information which led to a quarrel between himself and his wife that
his suspicions were aroused, but even after that he still had believe in his
wife’s innocence.

His Honour then reviewed the evidence and concluded as
follows: That is the substance of the evidence, and it comes to this that the
respondent and co-respondent were related to each other that they called each
other by their Christian names, and did so to the knowledge of the petitioner,
they kissed on various occasions, they did that also with the knowledge of the
petitioner, and these acts were known to him and caused no suspicion in his
mind.They went to the theatre together,
that was equally known to the petitioner.It was done with his knowledge, as he has himself admitted, and he
himself asked the co-respondent to take his wife to the theatre.There was no concealment about that.There was no concealment about going into the
room, and the petitioner himself admits that he was present when Jordan
appeared in his sleeping suit before Mr. Manook.The evidence as to Mrs. Manook being in the
room when the last witness but one went to the house really proves
nothing.It is quite clear, according to
his statement that Mrs. Manook must have known that he was there and must have
heard him ask for her, and yet, having an opportunity of concealing herself,
she did not do so but comes out of the place where she must have known that he
was. That itself is not the act of a woman who had been guilty of any
impropriety, and it further appears that the room out of which she came was the
room in which the hotel linen was kept.The witness says that Mrs. Manook did not bring back any linen out of
the room, and that on previous occasions that he had seen going for linen, the
door had not bee shut. But the door being shut on one occasion is not
sufficient, taken with the other matters which happened at the same time, to
warrant me in thinking that there was any improp0riety.It is not suggested that Jordan was there at
the time.On the whole case, I think
even admitting that there might have been some familiarities – even admitting
that there might have been something which might be called indiscretions, if
possible (though I must say, considering the complete openness with which everything
seems to have done I am hardly justified in saying there was any indiscretion)
there certainly is not sufficient to my mind to justify me in holding that the
respondent and co-respondent committed adultery, and therefore this petition
must be dismissed with costs.

The separation order of
Mrs. Manook was heard directly after the dismissal of the divorce application
by Mr. Manook.

One witness, an employee
of Mr. Manook called Ramat Akal stated “he
had witnessed rows between Mr and Mrs Manook and seeing Mr. Manook smash furniture
and break panes of glass….”

Another witness also an
employee of Mr. Manook’s called Jugger Nath stated “hearing rows going on in the house.On one occasion, he had seen Mr. Manook beating Mrs. Manook and he (the
witness) took hold of Mr. Manook by the hand and pulled him away……”

Also testifying in Mrs.
Manook’s defence was Vardon Jordan, who said: “I went with Mr. Manook’s
brother to live with Mr and Mrs Manook. I was living with Mr. Manook’s brother
in Jordan’s Hotel when I arrived from Calcutta. Mr. Manook persuaded me to come
and live with them.I and her brother
shared one room. Mr. and Mrs. Manook’s room was in the upper floor above our
room.When I went to live there I had
not heard that Mr. and Mrs. Manook had been in the habit of quarrelling. About
eight or nine days after we went there I heard quarrelling going on upstairs. I
heard Mr. Manook abusing Mrs Manook. I could hear the words quite distinctly…….He called her a damn bitch a damn
scoundrel etc.

………………..this was a disgraceful state of affairs and
that the whole neighbourhood could hear the obscene language he used.On the 31st October I left the
house to go to fetch my family from Calcutta. I returned with my wife and
family on the 18th November and lived next door. I was on very
intimate terms with Mr. Manook up to the time I left.I heard this suit was being filed for
judicial separation and at that time and after the institution of the suit I
was on intimate terms with Manook.On
the 18th January my wife and I went over to Mr. Manook’s house at
Mr. Manook’s request.Mr. Manook was
there.On the night of the 4th
January I heard distinctly from the other house Mr. Manook abusing Mrs.
Manook.I also heard Mrs. Manook shriek
out “murder murder!” My wife was in the house with me.I went down stairs and then went upstairs
again.Mrs. Manook then came over to our
house. In consequence of what Mrs. Manook told me my syee went for her brother.
The ayah and the baby came soon after and with Mrs. Manook and her brother went
over to Jordan’s Hotel. The other two children were left in my wife’s care. The
next day, Mrs. Manook came over to the house.She took away the children and some of the boxes.”

Cross examined by Mr.
Vertannes, Vardon Jordan said: “I have
been on intimate terms with Mrs. Manook and kissed her often in presence of her
husband but never in his absence except on one occasion and that was at the
wharf when I returned from Calcutta…………….”

The sensationalism of this
case which included a great deal of highly unusual personal detail to be
reported in the newspapers, was the talk of Rangoon and in particular the
Armenian community there for a very long time.

Mrs. Manook was successful
in her desire for a separation.

Vardon Jordan’s own wife
also filed for a separation in the Calcutta Courts. Vardon ended his days in
London dying in Notting Hill in 1919. Two of his children were executors of his
Will. His life was a far cry from that of his brothers’ Paul Jordan and Dr.Gregory Jordan both of whom carved successful careers in Hong Kong, Paul as a
stock broker and Gregory as the Port Health Officer. Gregory, who spent a
lifetime apart from his brother Vardon is buried only a few feet away from him in
Kensal Green cemetery.

Vardon Jordan's grave in Kensal Green Cemetery

Dr. Gregory Jordan's grave is close to his brother's

So far, nothing can be
found on what happened to Mary Manook, her estranged husband died in 1894 in Mandalay.
He is most likely to be buried close to his first wife whose early demise he
lamented dearly and whom he held in such high regard that Mary was simply
unable to compete against the angelic Fairy.

Sunday, 5 April 2015

This month's blog post reproduces the detailed inventory taken of the Armenian Churches at Calcutta, Tangra and Chinsurah respectively in 1924. A previous inventory of the Church had been taken in 1891.

I have added biographical notes where possible, and these coupled with the inventory, will also give other Armenian family history researchers a look at some of the items that were presented to the church in the memory of others from the community. The earliest annotated item is dated from 1750. This is quite significant because the current Armenian Church registers in Calcutta only start at 1793.

The Armenian Holy Nazareth Church had the official foundation stone laid in 1707, although a wooden chapel existed even before that. So why do the Church registers that record the baptisms, marriages and burials only start in 1793?

According to Joseph Emin in his book "The Life and Adventures of Joseph Emin" published in 1792 he says that:

"At one time there were three wardens of the Calcutta Church. A dispute arose between the three, one of them took away the records [registers] to his house and nothing previous to 1793 has survived this most unfortunate proceeding."

The action of the unknown warden prior to October 1793 means that today's Indian Armenian family history researchers and enthusiasts will be unable to search for their families in earlier years. This in turn makes my recordings of the Armenian graves in India even more important because a number of the tombstones will have dates of birth as well as death which include entries prior to 1793. To view Armenian graves in India please look at this link.

This is still an on-going project because I am in a process of getting the graves translated into English, and it is a very slow process, something that I have been undertaking for the last 8 years. There are still several hundred Armenians grave images to have translated into English.

No one else has attempted such an ambitious project.

The Properties and

Complete Inventory

As at 1924

Of the

Armenian Holy Church of Nazareth
Calcutta

Armenian Church of
St. Gregory, Karya
(now known as ‘The Small Church, Park
Circus’) Calcutta

Armenian Holy
Church of the Resurrection

Tangra, Calcutta

Armenian St.
John’s Church

Chinsurah

Compiled by A.P. Arakiel
1st April 1924

Additional biographical
footnotes and annotations

added by Liz Chater

Holy
Church of Nazareth, Calcutta

[Letters or numbers in square brackets are footnotes, please go to the end of the blog post to read the releveant information - the hyperlink does not work from the link]

GOLD ITEMS

Serial No.

Quantity

Articles

In memory of

Year

1

1

Gold swinging incense burner

In memory of Mr. and Mrs. Phillip A. George

1856

2

1

Gold cross set with diamonds and 4 glass boxes
containing relics

-

-

3

1

Chased gold chalice, set with diamonds, emeralds,
rubies and other stones, with a plain paten

Tower clock with 1 dial, brought out from England at
the expense of Catchick Arakiel22 in the year 1792.Repaired and 2 more dials added during the Wardenship of Johanness
Avdall[24]
in 1838, by L. Grey, Calcutta.

[1]
I believe this is quite likely to be Mrs. Ishkhan Manuk ZORAB. The ZORAB family
were an extremely important Armenian family of Calcutta, whose descendants are now
spread around the world; from New Zealand to Southampton in the UK.

[2]
I believe this is Stephen George Bagram, a major benefactor of the Armenian
Church, Calcutta – see his grave

[3]
I believe this is Eliaz Owen Moses who was an attorney to the Armenian
community of Calcutta

[4]
Ethel died on the 30th June 1902 aged 18 years 1 month and 1 day –
see her grave

[5]
The AVETOOM family are connected to many Armenian families of Calcutta: Agabeg,
Galstaun, Apcar, Moses, Thaddeus, Arathoon, Nahapiet, to name but a few.

[6]
I believe this to be Hovhannes Manuk Zorab of the Bengal Medical Service – see
his grave

[11]
Stephen Simon STEPHEN married Katrina GREGORY at the Armenian Church Calcutta
on 12 November 1867, the loss of their infant child Simon was a terrible blow
to the family.Katrina GREGORY’s family
was large, and today they live around the world; New Zealand, Florida, various
parts of the UK, Australia, USA to name but a few.

[12]
Aristide C. JOHN was Greek by birth. His wife Sarah nee PAUL was the daughter
of the extremely and highly regarded Armenian attorney, Peter Jacob PAUL who
was the trusted legal adviser of the Armenian Church Calcutta for over two
decades and who offered all legal advise and guidance to them without any
charge. The PAUL family are intrinsically linked with the GREEKS of Calcutta,
as one of Sarah’s brothers, Sir Gregory Charles PAUL also served the Armenian
Community.It is claimed that, although
he served as a loyal and dedicated member of the Armenian community for over 30
years during which time, like his father, all his legal advice was given free
of any fees to the Armenian Church, upon Sir Gregory’s death the Armenian
Church committee refused to allow him to be buried in the grounds of the
Armenian Church Calcutta and he was therefore subsequently buried in the Greek
Church cemetery.

[13]
Lizzi Thaddeus nee ARRAKIEL was married to Thaddeus Mesrope THADDEUS – see
graves.Lizzie was a niece to Sir
Catchick Paul Chater, and her ancestry can be traced as far back as 1650 to the
Minas family dynasty of New Julfa.

[15]
Anna – see grave.She was married to
Alexander APCAR. They had 4 daughters; this silver cross was presented by her
daughter Minnie who was married to John Marchmont GREGORY.

[16]
Descendants exist today through his sons David PETRUS and Owen Jacob PETRUS.

[17]
Arratoon Hyrapiet CREET was married to Merghatoon (Mary) B. Hovakim her family
was very large with many connections to almost every major Armenian family of
Calcutta: the Lucas, Malcolm, Michael, Gasper, Johannes, Zeytoon, Mesrope,
Zorab, Aganoor, George, Martin, Emin, Arathoon, Chater, Joseph, Marcar,
Hyrapiet, Thaddeus, Avetoom, Jordan, Sarkies, Carapiet, Basil, Galestin and
more.Arratoon Hyrapiet CREET’S brother
Peter Hyrapiet CREET was a major contributor and benefactor of the Armenian
College of Calcutta, famously donating the swimming pool, amongst other things.
He died at Trieste in northern Italy and is buried at the Armenian Roman
Catholic Mekhitharist Monastary on the island of San Lazarro near Venice
opposite the tomb of Abbot Mekhithar the Founder of the Mekhitharist Order.

[19]
John Minas APCAR was the son of Minas Vertannes APCAR.See endnoteii

[20]
Both Arratoon Stephen and Johannes Carapiet Galstaun were major contributors
and benefactors of the Armenian Church of Calcutta.See their graves.

[21]
Known as ‘Car’ Balthazar, he was a merchant and auctioneer but became a jeweller
to King Theebaw who reigned in Burma from 1878 to 1885. The King gave Car’s
wife Hosannah a valuable necklace, which became a family heirloom until it was
stolen in London.Hosannah was a half
sister to Lizzie Thaddeus nee ARRAKIEL mentioned above.

[22]
Gregory APCAR died 23rd June 1847 – see grave.Gregory Apcar stated in a Deed of Trust dated
25th March 1913, that his firm, Apcar & Co., had for many years provided
certain yearly sums for support and maintenance of relatives and descendants of
his grandfather and grandmother living in Julpha and the neighbourhood and that
Gregory Apcar was desirous of continuing such provision.Gregory’s first wife, Khatchkhathoon SARKIES
was the daughter of Johannes Ter SARKIES and Elizabeth ARRAKIEL, whose own
father Catchick ARRAKIEL had donated the clock in the tower of the Armenian
Church, Calcutta.

[23]
Johannes G. APCAR was a son of Gregory Apcar and brother to Arathoon APCAR.

[24]
Johannes Avdall was headmaster of the Armenian College Calcutta for 45
years.He married Tekli Sarkies on the
11th December 1830 at the Armenian Church. Tekli’s father was Johannes
Ter Sarkies and her mother was Elizabeth Arrakiel. Elizabeth Arrakiel’s father
was Catchick Arrakiel who donated the clock still position in the tower of the
Armenian Church today.

[25]
Buried at Tangra, but his grave is badly worn and cannot be read.However, On a black marble tablet fixed on
the outside south wall of the church, it says "This tablet is erected as a
mark of remembrance of the kindness of Mr. John Boisogomoff of Tiflis in
furnishing the church and the 1st and 2nd flats of the Parochial buildings with
39 electric fans and wiring for installation on the 27th January 1902"

[26]
A number of Armenians worked at the Calcutta Stock Exchange, several of whom
were members of the Calcutta Stock Exchange Association.

Major T.C. Avetoom, was the first Armenian to
establish his own firm at the Calcutta Stock Exchange.Avetoon worked as an exchange broker before
the formation of the Calcutta Stock Exchange Association, of which he became a
founder member in 1908 and later a committee member.In 1969 his portrait was hanging in the Stock
Exchange Hall.

Avetoom was educated at La Martiniere College, joined
the Calcutta Volunteer Rifle Corps, attained the rank of major and was
appointed the commandant of his corps.He was an exceptionally good shot and when a captain won two
medals.One was presented to him by
members of the "B" Company Challenge Shield Team and the other by the
First Battalion of the Calcutta Volunteer Rifle Corps.When he was a major he was presented with a
marble clock (dated 1892) by the "4" Inter-Company Contingent.

[27]
He was part of the APCAR clan, a barrister.He died 20 March 1905.

[28]
Mariam was Joseph’s first wife. She died 25 November 1878 – see grave.

[29]
Mary Abraham’s family (nee Sarkies) was from Chinsurah, her father Abraham Joseph
Sarkies is buried there – see grave.

[31]
Anna married George Manuk SHIRCORE 12th June 1838 at the Armenian
Church Calcutta. They had 8 children, Anna died 14thMarch 1851 a month after giving birth to a
daughter.Anna’s father was Carapiet
Jacob and her mother Taghui Arrakiel, was the daughter of Moses Catchick
Arrakiel whose own father was Catchick Arrakiel who famously donated the clock
to the Armenian Church at Calcutta.

[32]
Reverend (Ter) Johanness Catchick Arrakiel had been ordained a priest for the
service of the Armenian church of St. John the Baptist, at Chinsurah at the
special desire of his pious mother, died at Calcutta on the 29th October 1832
aged 52 years, and was buried inside the church of Nazareth where both his
parents and elder brother are interred, in the north side.

[33]
From the Inventory of his Will and possessions it is estimated that he died
between 1786-1797

[i]
A successful merchant of Calcutta, he was the head of the Armenian community
there and was held in high esteem by his compatriots for his benevolence and
his charities.

He built the beautiful Armenian Church at Saidabad near
Murshidabad in 1758, entirely at his own expense in memory of his parents.There was a brass tablet on the north wall of
the Armenian church at Saidabad, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, with an
inscription in Armenian, from which it appears that the church was built by
Khojah Petrus to the memory of his revered parents, Arathoon his father and
Hosannah his mother, Dastagool his wife, Khojah Gregory (Gorgin Khan) and Agah
Barsegh (Basil) his brothers and all his blood relations, whether dead of
alive.This tablet is now in the picture
gallery of the Armenian Church at Calcutta.

In addition, he repaired and embellished the Armenian
Church of Calcutta in 1763, and built two additional altars inside the church,
one of the right side of the main altar, in memory of his brother Gorgin Khan,
who was assassinated near Monghyr, and the other on the left side to
commemorate his memory.Joseph Emin, an
Armenian of Calcutta, in his “Life and Adventures” book printed in 1792 in
London, calls Khojah Petrus “the early God of the Calcutta Armenians” which clearly
shows the high esteem in which he was held by his countrymen.” Source:
Armenians in India by Mesrovb Seth P.345.

[ii]
Mrs. M.V. Apcar’s name was Louise nee Malchus.Her husband, Minas Vertannes Apcar came to India from Persia in 1876 at
14 years of age with only the clothes he was wearing. Funded by his second
cousin Alexander "Fat Alec" Apcar, fourteen years his senior, he was
sent to St Xaviers (for 6 months) and the Armenian Colleges (for 1 year) to
study, and equipped himself with some business skills. He entered the firm of
Burn & Co, but after a short while joined Apcar and Demetrius. He left to
set up his own business holding jute agencies, then becoming successively a
Zemindar and Colliery owner.

Apcar was interested in various concerns.He owned jute presses at Ghaora hat, Dewan
hat, Baneswar, Balarumpur, Kakinee, Haitibanda, Baura, Gauripur, and
Dubri.He also owned a colliery at
Joyrampore (Jharia Field), was a agent for the Seang Line of Steamers plying
between India and Chinese ports, and owner of several houses in Calcutta. He
was a member of the Bengal chamber of Commerce, the Legislative Council and the
Corporation, and a warden of the Armenian Church [in Calcutta]. Source: Liz
Chater research and Armenian Settlements in India by Annie Basil P.141.

[iii]
Joseph Emin was born in Hamadan, Iran, in 1726, and came to India for his
education.

Being intensely patriotic, he set himself the task of
endeavouring to rescue his countrymen from the yoke of anti-Christian
oppressors. With hardly any resources at his disposal, he went to England for a
course of military training, which he succeeded in obtaining through the
generosity and help of the English aristocracy, with whom he became acquainted
and whose sympathy for the cause of his compatriots he was able to enlist.

After succeeding in his objective, he set out for
Armenia via Turkey and Georgia, his aim being the organization of a joint force
of Armenians and Georgians for attainment of freedom. Unfortunately, he met
with very serious opposition everywhere and, after long struggles and extensive
travels lasting over two decades, he was compelled to abandon his plan and
return to India. He passed away in Calcutta in 1809 and was laid to rest in the
churchyard of the Armenian Holy Church of Nazareth.

WhiIe he was not able to render material help to his
community in Calcutta, his zeal, enthusiasm and great patriotism are
unforgettable, and his undaunted spirit and unceasing efforts stand as a
praiseworthy example for his Nationals.

At the suggestion of his friends, Joseph Emin wrote his
Memoirs in English, translations of which, in Armenian, are expected to be
published in America shortly. A book entitled "The Life and Adventures of
Joseph Emin", containing his memoirs, letters to friends, and experiences,
was compiled and published by his great-great-granddaughter, the late Miss Amy
Apcar. Source: Armenians in Australia and New Zealand, Father Aramais Mirzaian,
P.190.

[iv]
In 1796, through the munificence of Jacob Petrus, an opulent Armenian merchant
of Bombay and a native of Hamadan in Persia, the indispensable national church
was erected for divine worship in the Fort.It is situated in Medows Street, where an Armenian priest is maintained
for the spiritual requirements of the few Armenian families.

At the foot of the altar of the church is a square
tablet with an inscription in Armenian, of which the following is a verbatim
translation:

"This holy church was erected in the name of the
holy Apostle Peter, during the Patriarchate of His Holiness Lucas, the Catholicos
of the Armenians, by the munificence of Mr. Jacob of Hamadan, to the memory of
his late parents, Mr. Petrus, his father and Zanazan Khatoon, his mother, the
foundation stone of which was laid by Archbishop James, who was on an evangelical
tour in India on behalf of the Holy See of Etchmiatzin in the year of our Lord,
1796, on the 14th day of Thirah (12th October)." Source: Armenians in
India by Mesrovb Seth P.294

About Me

Fascinated by Armenian family history in Asia, I have decided to share some of my research finds here. Many of the documents I post have never been seen in public and I hope you find them interesting.
My research is peppered with stories of the lost, forgotten, the ordinary and extra-ordinary, there are indigo planters, bathroom attendants, apothecaries, architects and priests, barristers and bank managers, engineers and time-keepers, doctors, farriers, teachers, mechanics, musicians, magistrates, portrait painters, and valets - they all had a life, they all have a story and I'm trying to do them all.
For Armenian graves in India and other historical postings please see my main website http://www.chater-genealogy.com